The Best of Me

Another Nicholas Sparks book and, while not as disappointing as the last one, still a let down at the end.

Probbaly not the way I should start this post, huh?

How about:

This was my latest fluff read and, for the most part, I really enjoyed.  Nicholas Sparks pulls you through a classic love-story of the uptown girl and the boy from across the tracks.  True love?  Yes.  Did it work?  You'll have to read it to find out, but suffice it to say that about 20 years go by until the couple see each other again.  You time travel a bit via memories, but I liked that. The plot is decent and I found myself really getting into the story.  Until the end.

The end was just too far-fetched for me and did not flow with the rest of the work.

Unfortunately, I think he's losing his touch.

Father's Day

I didn't realize I had been remiss about Father's Day! What kind of wife/mother would I be if I blogged about Mother's Day but not Father's Day?! 

We had a wonderful and relaxed day.  Scot enjoyed a special breakfast and gifts before church, and then general hang-out play time until dinner.  I was fully planning on making his favorite dinner for him, but it was really really hot that day and he told me to not worry about dinner since it involved turning the stove and oven on.  He's such a dear.

So we used a very generous Carraba's guft card we had that was just begging to be used.

We had such a grand time.  The atmosphere was just right (a little rambunctious with low lights), the food was delicious, and the boys did great! 

All in all, a great day celebrating the man who is such a wonderful and patient dad to our boys.

Evan's scooter

Our little Evan is growing up before his eyes.  I can't believe he'll be FOUR in just over a week.

A few months ago, he discovered what a scooter was.  I think he saw some kid coasting by our house and was instantly hooked.  And then, we went to a friend's house and they had a scooter with 2 wheels in the front to prevent tipping and he was able to ride it.  He loved it. 

All he talked about for a couple months was a scooter.  "Do you think when I turn 7 I can have a scooter?" was a common question. Then we went to Pittsburgh a few weeks ago and he was able to ride a scooter again.  It was hard to get him off the thing when it was time to go in.  I knew we wouldn't be able to wait until 7.  My mom told him one day that maybe she would get a scooter for him when he turned 5 for him to ride at her house.  So in my mind, we were waiting a year.

Well, a little over a week ago, we were at a friend's house (she has older boys) and a Razor scooter was in the driveway and Evan went right over to it.  And rode it without difficulty.

I was in shock.  He shouldn't be able to do this, I thought.  It only has 2 little wheels and the handle bar is all the way up.

Well, he did.  And for 2 solid days he asked to go back to visit that friend just so he could ride the scooter. 
So I hopped on Craigslist just to see what was there.  To my surprise, a Razor scooter had just been posted.  A 5 mile drive and 15 dollars later, Evan was the proud owner of his very own Razor.

Suffice it to say we've taken lots of walks around the block in the last week.

Drew is quite content to now have the trike all to himself.

The Lucky One

Nicholas Sparks is my easy/mindless author I go to when I need beach or vacation reading.  So when this book popped up in my library queue ready to be picked up before I left for the wedding, I was thrilled!

I've read all but the most recent NS book, so I know what he's about and this book followed a lot of his other works.  And in that, I wasn't impressed.  My heart strings weren't tugged like in The Notebook or Message in a Bottle.  But it wasn't a total dud like some of his more recent works that I felt were rushed in their writing.  The characters in The Lucky One were at least 3 dimensional and the story line was decent.  He sure knows the human tenancies and matters of the heart.

So in short, if you're looking for an easy read for your next airplane ride where you won't be worried about ruining your makeup, this is a good pick. 

Frugal Fun: Veggie Burrito Bowl

I love Chipotle and the fresh food, but I recently decided to make my own Chipotle favorite and was beyond pleased with the results.  Everything is over on the food blog, but it was such a money saver that I thought I'd share it on here, too!

Regular Chipotle Veggie Burrito Bowl: $6
Home made version of a veggie burrito bowl: less than $2 per bowl

For all the yummy details, go here!

A crazy 48

We had 48 wonderful crazy happy hours with my parents this past weekend, and while I'm still sorting through laundry and getting my house back in order after being gone for 3 days, it was totally worth every minute.

Why so short, you may wonder?  We were both out in Indiana for a wedding of a very dear friend of mine.  The wedding was on Friday night, but we all got there at lunch time and hung out until it was wedding time and continued hanging out until Sunday right after lunch when we parted ways.

We played and splashed in the pool, we went on walks, we ate out, we ate in.  We lounged and read stories and sucked on charms pops.  We laughed, we cried (tears of absolute joy, tears of exhaustion (Drew) and tears of sadness at separation), we whispered while boys were asleep.  Scot and my dad were able to bond over beers at some famously eclectic micro-brew, while watching game 4 of the Stanley Cup and while playing frisbee.  Mom and I were able to talk and shop and catch up.

And of course, the boys were loved on every single moment they were there and Scot and I came away from the trip feeling extremely spoiled by my parent's generosity.

Here are a few pictures, but the rest are here.

 All of us had so much fun at the hotel pool!

 I've known Ross since I was a wee little infant (6 weeks old), and I was beyond excited for his special day and I can't wait to get to know his lovely wife, Joanna!

Evan's artwork

For a while, Evan colored "normally" for an almost 4 year old boy.  Slightly messing.  All one color.  Maybe two colors if the original color was black.

About 2 weeks ago, things changed dramatically.  Not only were all the art pieces mostly in the lines, they were rainbow colored.  Anyone else have a kid who colors like this? 

Summer Wreath

I made another wreath and it turned out so much better than the last one.  Tell ya what, if you're going to make these, spend the extra buck or two to get the actual wreath form!

This one is more summery with the jute and bright colored flowers.  I love it. And I'm already envisioning a fall-themed one!  They're so easy to make and it cost me $6.50 for everything.  Gotta love that!